The pitfalls of core engineering jobs in India and how GATE is a trap
Make smart career choices and avoid the pitfalls of outdated exams
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“Hello Dada (brother), how are you? Are there any openings in your organisation?” - I received a call from a junior a few days back.
I replied, “Yes, there are many. But what do you want to do? We have a variety of roles, from a delivery executive to Senior Data Scientist.”
“I don’t know. The GATE results aren’t promising and I think I should give up on this now.” - He said with a big sigh.
Recently, the IIT Madras director expressed his concern about core engineering students pursuing non-core jobs. And it grabbed the attention of a few people. And when I read the news, my mind immediately went back to the conversation I had with a junior from my college. While Mr. Kamakoti from IIT Madras might be right, the situation is not favourable at all for the students’ from core engineering batches to take up core engineering jobs.
First, let’s understand the pathway to getting these core jobs. GATE is the exam that you need to take. And once you clear it, and if you rank in the ‘elite tier’, then you will get a call to sit for the PSUs in India that are the dream core jobs of engineering students. The other way is to appear for the placements and get a job in a private firm. But the core companies mostly take from tier 1 colleges and very few tier 2s.
Let’s start with the number of students who appear for GATE every year. Here is a plot that shows the trend for the Mechanical, Civil and Electrical branches:
The trend shows that the number of students appearing for GATE is steadily decreasing since 2018. In just four years, from 2018 to 2022, the number of Mechanical candidates has dropped by half. Civil and Electrical branches are also seeing a decline. And I think this is a positive sign.
This tells you about the level of competition. Now let’s talk about the opportunities. GATE has two main benefits: one is admission to premier institutes like IITs, NITs for higher studies and another is the PSU and core jobs. Needless to say, after four years of ‘tedious’ engineering, most candidates opt for the latter. But what are the odds of getting a prestigious government job? On average, only the top 2000 rank holders are invited for interviews by the PSUs. And the number of students who land the job is even lower than that. 2000 is a generous estimate as with each passing year, and with continuous disinvestment, this number will dwindle further.
That was about government jobs. What about the private sector for core jobs?
Let’s have a look at the current job listings on Indeed:
Now this might not take into account the jobs offered in IITs and other premier institutes. But even when you add those numbers, it doesn’t look good for the core branch. What about non-core though, you ask? Indian IT firms alone have hired around 3 lakh candidates in the last financial year. Albeit they are not as ‘glamorous’ as the prestigious PSU jobs, but they are a good starting point for any fresher.
Now let’s look at the average salary:
The difference between CSE and core branches may not seem too big, but you have to consider that the demand and supply for CSE-IT jobs are much higher. And the career path for CSE graduates is also more diverse and dynamic. You can accelerate your growth by working hard and smart (the latter is more crucial). That’s why many core engineers end up doing MBA and switching to analytics, finance or product roles after getting some experience.
So what is the way forward?
You need to know yourself better. Government jobs, especially in the core sector, should be your plan B, not A. You have to be really passionate and determined to get them. It’s not enough to just know the concepts, you need to live and breathe them. I can tell you from my own experience as a Mechanical engineer that such people are rare. I have only met one guy who had that kind of passion. And even he failed on his first attempt. But the second attempt was enough for him.
It’s not just about working hard, it’s about working smart. India will definitely need more core engineers in the future if we want to become a manufacturing powerhouse rather than a consumption hub. But we are not there yet.
I hope this newsletter has given you some insights and motivation to plan your career wisely. If you have any feedback or questions, feel free to reply to this email or comment below.